During workouts some women have reported having exercise-induced orgasms. And they were not doing vagina aerobics to strengthen their pelvic muscles. Butt builder exercises like squats and lunges caused an increase in tension in their lower extremities that lead to the release of orgasms. Even more surprising were Coregasms from working out the abs while doing crunches and hanging leg raises. More predictable were women who admitted they felt aroused when they rolled on top of  a large exercise ball. So with these reports, it’s no wonder that researchers  Debra Herbenick and Dennis Fortenberry decided to conduct an anonymous survey to find out how many women had experienced orgasm, and what types of exercise were likely to elicit such a response. Of the 530 participants surveyed, 124 women did in fact experience exercise-induced orgasm and 246 reported exercise-induced sexual pleasure from an array of physical exercises that included using the “Captain’s Chair” – an ab strengthener, doing chin-ups, climbing poles, biking and even weight lifting. Less likely activities to result in orgasm on the survey were swimming, running and tennis.

Becoming aware that women can orgasm by exercising is a good enough reason to make working out a regular ritual. Taking care of your body inside and out can increase confidence, release feel-good endorphins and improve overall mental, physical, emotional and sexual health. If you don’t have a gym membership, you can still get on the orgasm workout bandwagon by doing your crunches at home. Adding some Kegel exercises to your fitness regiment is my advice to trigger those nerve impulses in the pelvic area and feel orgasmic sensations. Kegels are exercise techniques for strengthening these muscles to increase blood flow, tighten the vagina, improve bladder control,  increase orgasmic ability and even enable female ejaculation during orgasm. Empower your sexuality by exercising your sexual support muscles, which I like to refer to as vagina aerobics that you can do anytime, anywhere and nobody will know why you look so happy!

The survey report on exercise-induced orgasms is published in a special issue of Sexual and Relationship Therapy, a leading peer-reviewed journal in the area of sex therapy and sexual health. Co-author is J. Dennis Fortenberry, M.D., professor at the IU School of Medicine and Center for Sexual Health Promotion affiliate.